This is the second edition of the conclave and this year’s theme is "Common Maritime Priorities in Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and need for Regional Maritime Strategy"

The second edition of the Goa Maritime Conclave, which is being attended by navies of littoral nations of the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), focused on promoting mutual interaction among countries through diplomatic initiative in the maritime domain.

Top officials of the participating nations during the three day conclave which took off at the Naval War College in Goa on Thursday until Saturday will discuss emerging maritime threats in the Indian Ocean Region. In its effort to consolidate its strategic position in the IOR, India has been engaging regularly with its neighbouring countries through the bilateral defence and maritime cooperation mechanism. This is the second edition of the conclave and this year’s theme is “Common Maritime Priorities in Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and need for Regional Maritime Strategy”.

Officials of the participating countries will also discuss capacity building of navies of littoral countries in the Indian Ocean and strategies to improve interoperability of different navies will be discussed.

According to the Indian Navy, representatives from Indian Ocean littoral countries – from South East Asian countries including Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand; close neighbours like Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Sri Lanka and the island nations of Seychelles, Mauritius and Maldives are present.

Army Chief In The Maldives

While the Indian Army Chief General Bipin Rawat is on an on-going a five-day visit to the Maldives with the primary focus to deepen the military ties between the two countries, the Indian Coast Guard is simultaneously training its Maldivian counterparts in Chennai.

Rawat has held extensive talks with the island nation’s top defence brass to expand bilateral military cooperation and has also called on Maldivian President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.

According to reports, the army chief made it clear that India has no desire to impose its ideology on others nor it has any extraterritorial ambitions. And to counter the security threats and challenges emanating in its neighbourhood, India’s commitment to strategic independence continues.